When Scottish restaurant brand, Boisdale, was on the lookout for a purchasing partner to manage its procurement, whilst also implementing consolidated processes, Beacon, which helps businesses in the hospitality sector grow their profitability, came out trumps.
Boisdale is a group of high-end lively restaurants based in London, with sites based in Belgravia, Bishopsgate and Canary Wharf that provide Scottish cuisine, whisky bars, cigar terraces and live music. Having joined forces with Beacon in 2010 to consolidate its purchasing, Boisdale wanted to ensure the products purchased mirrored the quality of its cuisine, and that the strategy and working partnership was structured, transparent and professional.
From hand towels and stationery to lamps and tobacco, Beacon was tasked to undertake a full category analysis and present a proposal from a range of suitable suppliers to ensure the best products were sourced for the best commercial terms.
David Morris-Perry, Unit Controller of Boisdale of Canary Wharf Ltd, discovered that by taking advantage of Beacon’s years of procurement experience in the hospitality sector, the business could more effectively manage ad hoc events, such as the company’s pop up establishments at The Derby and The Boat Race. By outsourcing its procurement, Boisdale was able to easily scale the amount of products needed to successfully host guests at these major events.
Having worked with the company for over four years, Beacon’s remit now covers the entire non-food purchasing strategy for the group, and sourcing of a wide range of items across a number of category areas. In the last 12 months alone, this strategy has saved Boisdale approximately 18% as a group on its purchases.
“It has been fantastic working with Beacon as our purchasing partner,” commented David. “With its years of experience in the procurement industry, Beacon was easily able to accommodate and understand our business needs. It was important for us to implement a long-term uniform strategy across all our sites to ensure the same suppliers for non-food were used. The consolidation process, which was spearheaded by Beacon, has allowed us to focus on the quality of our food and drink, without needing to worry about the quality of non-food items, as we know we can trust Beacon and its suppliers.
“Furthermore, we know that when we agree to participate in ad hoc events, such as The Derby, Beacon will support us by up scaling our requirements. This ability comes from working with a national company, with a national network of suppliers – we are able to source products for a reasonable price, within a limited timescale quickly and easily.”
Jason Thompson, Key Client Director at Beacon, commented: “Working with Boisdale is not only a great opportunity to be part of their success but a pleasure in terms of the fact that they really understand and embrace what Beacon does. Working on ad hoc projects and long term strategies enables us to achieve great results with minimal impact to internal changes within the business.”